Inside Strictly pro Johannes Radebe's life away from spotlight – relationship to hidden talent
Johannes Radebe is hands down one of the most entertaining Strictly Come Dancing professionals, and most-loved since making history with the show's first ever all-male pairing when he danced with John Whaite back in 2021. The pair ultimately finished in second place, after the prized Glitterball trophy was lifted by Rose Ayling-Ellis and her pro partner, Giovanni Pernice.
Away from his time on the competition, Johannes tends to keep his private life exactly that - private. However, his fans are always eager to find out as much as possible on their favourite Strictly pro, as they love to keep up with what he's getting up to. So here's all you need to know about Strictly's Johannes Radebe...
How old is Johannes Radebe and what is his dance background?
Johannes Radebe is 37 years old and joined Strictly Come Dancing as a professional back in 2018. Hailing from Zamdela Sasolburg in South Africa, the talented BBC star took his first steps towards a professional dancing career at the tender age of seven.
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After falling in love with the glamour and discipline of dance, he dedicated the following 13 years to competing in local competitions, climbing up the Latin ranks, before eventually adding Ballroom and other dance styles, such as African Contemporary and Jazz.
Johannes then started coming out on top of national dance competitions, taking his talent worldwide and competing internationally, leaving South Africa at the age of 21 to pursue his dreams.
In 2014, he performed on Strictly Come Dancing SA, before a stint on Dancing With The Stars SA in 2018, which quickly led to his re-location here to the UK as he was headhunted by BBC bosses.
In 2019, Johannes catapulted to fame after we saw him partnered with former Coronation Street star Catherine Tyldesley. Following his popularity with the public, he was allocated a partner yet again in 2020, leading Caroline Quentin to eighth place. After his second placing with John Whaite, he came seventh with Ellie Taylor and fourth with Annabel Croft last year. This year he is dancing with Gladiator Montell Douglas, with the pair wowing the judges.
Upon joining Strictly, he said: “Joining Strictly Come Dancing is one of the greatest achievements of my dancing career. “It is such an honour to be chosen to be a part of an incredible cast and be part of one of the biggest shows that is celebrated worldwide.”
Is Johannes single or is he in a relationship?
Johannes is a pretty private person, but it's thought he's single as, earlier this year he said he was ready to date again after Annabel Croft told him to 'live'.
Johannes is very open about his sexuality and has spoken openly about how dance helped him come out, referring to the dance studio as his “refuge” when he was bullied over being gay. Writing for Metro, Johannes said: “As a young boy in South Africa, my family clearly knew I was ‘special’ – in the best way possible – but they never acted like there was anything different about me. I am grateful they never imposed ideas about sexuality on me – be that straight or gay – and I was allowed to just be a child.”
Johannes called his time so far within dance “the most beautiful journey” and explained he is now part of a team where everyone understands him. He added: “While I witnessed homophobia in the outside world and experienced bullying, my home and the dance studio were my refuge. It was a safe haven where I could just be me."
Johannes has been a huge driving force behind Strictly's diverse and celebratory dance routine over the past few years.
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Johannes was also the lead dancer during a performance in drag, dancing alongside Gorka Marquez and Giovanni Pernice as part of a tribute to Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Since that dance in heels, I’ve gone on to perform the show’s first same-sex partner dance with Graziano – which was so special and I couldn’t have been happier to be the face of it,” he said.
What does Johannes do outside of Strictly?
The hilarious dancer has appeared on a number of other TV shows here in the UK, such Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel. Despite his general knowledge not being the best, his sparkling personality shone through. He was also a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK and took part in Celebrity MasterChef in 2021.
More recently, it was announced he would star in a 2025 production of the stage musical Kinky Boots, which begins in Leicester on 17 January.
